It was the worst kind of heartbreak for Perri Shakes-Drayton as she failed to
make the final of the 400 metres hurdles.

The 23 year-old from Bow was forced to watch the final heat and hope that her time of 55.19 sec was good enough to win one of the two available fastest loser spots.

With American T’Erea Brown having already gone quicker than Shakes-Drayton in the first heat at the Olympics, the British medal hopeful needed the third-placed runner in the last semi-final to come in slower than her.

Coming off the track, Shakes-Drayton admitted that she was “expecting the worst” and, watching on a screen from the tunnel, it looked like her fears had been confirmed – she had finished 0.09 sec outside the qualifying time.

But for a while, she appeared to be redeemed, when Denisa Rosolová, of the Czech Republic, was disqualified for an infringement.

That meant Shakes-Drayton was promoted to eighth and given a place in the final, which she had been working towards for the past four years.

But there was a cruel twist for the athlete as the Czech Republic appealed against Rosolová’s disqualification.

The British in turn appealed against that decision, but it was not successful.

While Shakes-Drayton had been drawn into a tough heat, with American world champion Lashinda Demus and Jamaica’s Kaliese Spencer, she might have spared herself the agony with a quicker time.

Shakes-Drayton looked far more comfortable in the heats, running 54.62, which was sixth quickest time overall.

“The hurdling went well but I was running a bit blind,” she said.

Running from lane seven, she was quickly left behind by the mightily impressive Demus, who went off fast. It was a case of hanging on and trying to finish hard for the British athlete, but she appeared to stutter slightly before the final hurdle.

It was not the run she had wanted, well short of her 53.77 personal best, recorded earlier this season. Demus finished in 54.08 while Spencer came second in 54.20.

It was a serious blow for the local girl to miss her big night. Shakes-Drayton lives in Bow, went to school in Stepney and trains at Mile End, all within the ambit of the Olympic Park.

Russia’s Natalya Antyukh qualified quickest in 53.33, with the Czech Republic’s Zuzana Hejnova close behind in 53.62. With Demus and Spencer also running well, it should make for a quick final.

Britain’s other semi-finalist, Eilidh Child, also failed to qualify as she finished fifth in her heat in a time of 56.14.

In the first round of the women’s 200m, Britain’s Margaret Adeoye and Abi Oyepitan made it through to the semi-finals, which take place on Tuesday evening.

Adeoye, the 27-year-old Londoner who is coached by Linford Christie, was particularly impressive as she broke 23 sec for the first time, coming third in her heat in 22.94.

Oyepitan, who has had a terrible time with injuries in the past three years, finished second in her heat, behind Carmelita Jeter, in a time of 22.92. There was disappointment for

Britain’s Anyika Onuora, though, who finished fourth in her heat, as her time of 23.23 was not quick enough to be among the six fastest losers.

Sanya Richards-Ross, of the United States, qualified quickest in 22.48.